Monthly Archives: November 2003

With the release of Star Wars in 1977, George Lucas captured the heart and the imagination of the world. After 22 years, Lucas began the slow and difficult process of returning both with the release of Episode I: The Phantom Menace in 1999.

“I guess it was about 1995 or so when I decided that I’d held onto these things long enough,” Lucas admitted recently during an interview at Skywalker Ranch in Nicasio, California. “So I’m giving them back.”

The process has been more involved than Lucas anticipated. “I thought the first prequel would do the trick. Jar Jar Binks. Jake Lloyd. I was sure that would be the end of it.”

The world, it seems, is not so eager for the freedom Lucas offers. “I was sure the second one would finish the job,” he said. “Hayden Christensen is the perfect choice to free the world’s captive heart. I hadn’t counted on Ewan McGregor, though. He’s exactly what everyone envisioned a young Obi-Wan Kenobi would be like.” McGregor’s portrayal of the Jedi Knight is, some say, the string that ties the prequels to the original trilogy.

McGregor’s acting ability isn’t the only thing that has stymied Lucas’ attempt. “The boys over at ILM did one heck of a job with the Yoda/Dooku…” Lucas chuckled. “Come on. Dooku. My kid made that up. That’s funny. Anyway, the whole lightsaber battle was much better than I anticipated. I thought that one would be the ultimate imagination liberator. Boy, was I wrong.”

“Fans of Star Wars are simply too used to this type of captivity,” says noted psychologist Bernard Shenck. “It happens all the time in hostage situations. The victims begin to sympathize with and even love their captors. That’s exactly what’s going on here. And it’s been going on for over twenty years. Those behavior patterns are extremely difficult to break.”

Avid Star Wars fan Elmer Gibbin reinforces Shenck’s theory. “Lucas is going to blow us all away with Episode III,” Gibbin insists. “He’ll wrap everything up nicely. The showdown between Anakin (Christensen) and Obi-Wan (McGregor) is going to be awesome!” Gibbin continued with his glowing predictions for another twenty minutes until asked about midi-chlorians, at which point he became withdrawn and hostile.

Shenck predicts that Lucas may have a bumpy road ahead of him. “If he’s not able to completely release the world’s heart and imagination from captivity with the third prequel, he may have to make sequels to the original trilogy.”

“No,” says Lucas. “That simply will not happen. Once Episode III: Invasion of the Return of the Revenge of the Son of the Phantom Clone wraps up, I’m finished.”

When asked about rumors that Steven Spielberg would be directing the sequels, Lucas shook his head emphatically. “Absolutely not. Steven is a great friend, but I have to be honest: he’s the sort of director that would re-capture all the hearts and imaginations I’ve worked so hard to set free over the past few years. I can’t risk that.”